Apollo 11 Command Module Foil

The Apollo 11 mission is one of the greatest achievements in human history and I am so happy to share this incredible item once more!

- Hans Fex, Creator and Chief Curator of the Mini Museum

Please note that due to very high demand we are limiting this item to two (2) per customer. This includes past orders. Thank you for helping others to share their love of the Apollo Program!!

About the Apollo 11 Command Module Foil Specimen

This specimen is a fragment of mission-flown kapton foil which provided thermal protection for the astronauts aboard the Apollo 11 Command Module.

The specimen measures approximately 1mm x 1mm and is enclosed in an acrylic cube with a magnified lid for easy viewing. The acrylic cube is housed inside a padded, glass-topped riker box display case measuring 5 1/2" x 6 1/2".

An information card is included with images from Apollo 11, details about the mission, and a certificate of authenticity.

The card also features a centerline die-cut square matching the dimensions of the acrylic cube.

This allows you to showcase the specimen inside the display case with any one of four different designs.

Please Note: The magnified lid is secured to the acrylic cube with special tape, but the specimen inside is directly accessible. If you choose to remove the lid to examine the specimen, please use extreme caution. This cannot be stressed enough. Kapton foil is very light and can easily escape. In addition, due to the delicate nature of the material, fragments can vary in shape.

Source: Acquired at auction, this material comes from the personal collection of retired NASA Production Control Engineer William R. Whipkey. Among space collectors, Whipkey is considered the most reliable source for kapton foil because he oversaw the decommissioning of the Command Modules from multiple missions. He was also responsible for making most of the commemorative displays for astronauts, VIPs, and others who worked on the Apollo Program.

About Apollo 11

"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." ~ Astronaut Neil Armstrong

The Apollo program was conceived during President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration and later dedicated to President John F. Kennedy's goal of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" within a decade.

President Kennedy proposed this bold agenda during an address to the United States Congress on May 25th, 1961. On July 20, 1969, NASA fulfilled the mission when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to land on the Moon. This was the 11th flight of the Apollo program, and the success was broadcast live to the entire world.

Piloted by astronaut Michael Collins, Command Module Columbia orbited the Moon while fellow astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin explored the surface. The craft carried all three astronauts safely back to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on July 24, 1969.

The technological and scientific breakthroughs associated with the Apollo program were vast and long lasting, but it is the human achievement which has held our imaginations for so many years.

NASA Image # : AS11-44-6552: This photograph shows the partly-illuminated Earth rising over the lunar horizon. The lunar terrain shown, centered at 85 degrees east longitude and 3 degrees north latitude on the nearside of the Moon is in the area of Smyth's Sea. The Earth is approximately 400,000 km away.

NASA Image # : AS11-37-5445: The Apollo 11 Command and Service Modules (CSM) are photographed from the Lunar Module (LM) in lunar orbit during the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission. The lunar surface below is in the north central Sea of Fertility. The coordinates of the center of the picture are 51 degrees east longitude and 1 degree north latitude. About half of the crater Taruntius G is visible in the lower left corner of the picture. Part of Taruntius H can be seen at lower right.

NASA Image # : AS11-44-6581: The Apollo 11 Lunar Module (LM) "Eagle", in a landing configuration is photographed in lunar orbit from the Command and Service Modules (CSM) "Columbia". Inside the LM were Commander, Neil A. Armstrong, and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin Jr. The long "rod-like" protrusions under the landing pods are lunar surface sensing probes. Upon contact with the lunar surface, the probes send a signal to the crew to shut down the descent engine.

NASA Image # : AS11-40-5877: One of the first steps taken on the Moon, this is an image of Buzz Aldrin's bootprint from the Apollo 11 mission. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the Moon on July 20, 1969.

NASA Image # : AS11-40-5873: Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., Lunar Module pilot, is photographed during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity (EVA) on the lunar surface. In the right background is the Lunar Module "Eagle." On Aldrin's right is the Solar Wind Composition (SWC) experiment already deployed. This photograph was taken by Neil A. Armstrong with a 70mm lunar surface camera.

NASA Image # : AS11-44-6552: This photograph shows the partly-illuminated Earth rising over the lunar horizon. The lunar terrain shown, centered at 85 degrees east longitude and 3 degrees north latitude on the nearside of the Moon is in the area of Smyth's Sea. The Earth is approximately 400,000 km away.